Brassiere



H. NELSON Feb. 6, 1951 BRASSIRE Filed April 12 1947 NVENTR. ./ez/Zfw.

BY fm Patented Feb. 6, 1951 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE BRAssIaE Hildred Nelson, Chicago, Ill.

Application April 12, 1947, Serial No. 741,041

3 Claims.

This invention relates to improvements in womens garments and more particularly to a brassire.

These garments are worn primarily as a breas support and to give shape and form to the gure.

Utility and saleability depend to a great extent upon the capacity of the garment to give the necessary support and at the same time to achieve and maintain the desired and extensively advertised configuration which the fashion of the day demands. This entails not only the uplift effect, but also the presentation of a smooth flowing line without rolls or bulges.

To create this effect and achieve the necessary utilitarian results, a number of expedients have been resorted to by the industry, none of which have proven effective. The means most commonly employed is to provide pockets for the breasts and fit the garment as tight about the body as possible. This has proven to be unsatisfactory. A garment thus fitted rolls at the lower edge giving the effect of a cord which results in a binding and cutting of the body.

To prevent this rolling effect some garments employ stays or rigid members and others have elastic gussets inserted in the lower portion of the garment but such garments have proven to be uncomfortable and unsatisfactory. The binding and cutting effect persists and if the garment is at all loosened to afford some comfort to the wearer, the breast support is weakened or lost and the fashionable appearance immediately disappears.

This is especially true when the brassire is worn by pregnant women and in so called inflationary type of brassires which employ breast pads to simulate the human breast and which are worn by persons whose breasts are too small or flat for accepted style or those who have lost a breast by operation.

It has long been recognized by the industry that flexibility at the tension points, such as the lower edge of the garment and at the shoulder straps, is desirable, but such flexibility has not been achieved. Even where elastic gussets are employed they are stitched into the garment by straight edge stitching, thus destroying all or nearly all elasticity.

it is the object of the present invention to provide a brassire free from the defects of the prior art and which will be retained in proper position upon the body without binding or cutting.

A. further object is to provide a brassire which is fitted together tightly enough and yet is flexible enough at the point of tension to give 2 the necessary breast support and the fashionable appearance without discomfort.

A further object is to provide a brassire that can be worn during pregnancy without discomfort, but which will give the necessary support and effect.

A further object is to provide a brassire ofthe inflationary type which will maintain its appearance under all circumstances and yet is flexible and comfortable.

These and numerous other objects and ad vantages will be apparent throughout the progress of the following specifications.

The accompanying drawing illustrates a selected embodiment of the invention and Athe views therein are as follows:

Fig. l is a front view of the improved garment.

Fig. 2 is a cross sectional view taken on line 2-2 of Fig. 1.

Fig. 3 is a perspective view of a breast pad.

Fig. 4 is a fragmentary front View of the improved shoulder strap.

Fig. 5 is a fragmentary side view of the improved shoulder strap.

Fig. 6 is a cross sectional `View taken on line -G of Fig. 4.

To illustrate a preferred embodiment of the present invention there is shown a pair of breast receiving cups It, individually shaped to receive the breasts of the wearer and which are sufficiently full to include breast pads hereinafter described. The cups l!) are constructed with front walls l2 and flaps I4 and l5 which together with the full front wall l2 co-operate to form a pocket to admit and snugly retain the breast pad i8 as shown in Fig. 2. Any soft spongy resilient material may be used for the breast pad but it has been found that foam latex gives good results.

The cups l@ formed of a material cut on a bias each contain the elastic inserts or gussets 20 which have their major bases at the lower front marginal edges of cups It and extend upwardly toward the center of each cup. The flaps IE are formed with similar elastic inserts or gussets 22 which are coeXtensive and coincidental with the front gussets 23. The gussets 2i! and 22 being elastic provide ample room for the breasts and still afford positive breast support without binding or cutting. This has been found to be extremely desirable, especially in the case of Women in pregnancy. Multiple gussets may be used in-each cup if required. The outer marginal edges of each cup maybe reinforced with the tape 24 except at the lower marginal edges where the elastic 26 is employed for that purpose.

A front section 28 of elastic material is stitched to cups lll and is made to provide cup separation 26 to t the individual wearer. Although conventional stitching may be employed at other points, it is of the utmost importance that the lower marginal edges of said cups i be stitched to the said front section 28 with the V-shaped ratchet stitching tl and that the lower marginal edge of said front section 28 be stitched with `\/shaped ratchet stitching 32. The V stitching 30 and 32 together form the outline of a diamond as shown in Fig. 1.

Such stitching permits the maximum breast support and ilection without undue tension, cutting or binding for reasons hereinafter explained.

rIhe front section 28 and gussets 26 and 22 may be made of any well known elastic, although power net has been found to give ery satisfactory results.

Attached to iront section 28 is the body encircling portion 34 which may be made of any desired material and which fastens around the body by any well known means (not shown).

Shoulder straps 36 are attached to the upper marginal edges of cups l0 and body encircling portion 34 at the required places. While any type of shoulder strap may be used, the preferred form as shown in Figs. 4 and 5 is desirable. The said shoulder strap comprises a fabric envelope 38 cut on a bias which encloses intermittent sections of cushioning material 49 and is held therein by V-shaped ratchet stitching 42. Such construction not only provides positive support, but minimizes cutting and binding at the shoulders which are always points of tension.

It may be noted that V-shaped ratchet stitching is employed at such points where the garment is apt to bind and cut. In the conventional garments of this type even where elastic is employed such elastic is retained by the conventional straight edge stitching which destroys or limits the elastic quality. By using the V-shaped stitching it may be readily seen that full elasticity is unimpaired and even a tighter t can be employed when necessary without destroying the full fiexibility of the garment and without the danger of cutting or binding.

It may also be noted that the improved garment may be used with or without the breast pads i8, it being evident that the said garment and the advantages inherent therein are available in any type of brassire.

Changes may be made in form and construction without departing from the spirit of the invention or sacricing any of the advantages and the right is hereby reserved to make all changes as fairly fall within the scope of the following claims.

What is claimed as new and desired to be secured by Letters Patent of the United States is as follows:

l. A garment of the class described comprising a pair of non-elastic breast receiving cups of concavo-convex form having pad receiving and holding pockets formed integrally with said cups, a breast pad of soft, sponge rubber shaped to nt snugly within said pad receiving pockets and held therein without displacement to present the appearance of a naturally formed breast, a plurality of elastic triangular shaped inserts, extending upwardly from the front lower marginal edges of said cups toward the center thereof, an elastic front section stitched to and separating said cups, the said cups being stitched to said iront section at their lower marginal edges by continuous v-shaped ratchet stitching, a body encircling portion attached to said front section and the outer marginal edges or" said cups, shoulder straps attached to the upper marginal edges of said cups to maintain said garment in position, said shoulder straps having intermediate sections of cushioning material enclosed in a iabric envelope and maintained therein by V-shaped ratchet stitching, the said garment having similar V-shaped ratchet stitching at the lower marginal edge of said front section which stitching together with the stitching on the lower marginal edges of said breast cups forms the outline of a diamond and permits maximum breast support and ilection without tension, binding or displacement.

2. A garment of the class described comprising a pair of breast receiving cups of concaveconvex form, an elastic iront portion stitched to said cups and adapted to retain said cups in predetermined spaced relation, said cups being stitched to said front portion at their lower marginal edges by continuous V-shaped ratchet stitching, a body encircling portion attached to said front portion and to the outer marginal edges of said cups, the said garment being provided with V-shaped ratchet stitching at,the lower marginal edge of said front portion which stitching together with the stitching on the lower marginal edges of said breast cups forms the outline of a diamond and permits breast support and flection without tension or binding.

3. A garment of the class described comprising a pair of breast receiving nonelastic cups of concave-convex form, elastic triangularshaped inserts extending upwardly from the lower marginal edges of said cups toward the center thereof, an elastic front portion stitched to said cups and adapts to retain said cups in predetermined spaced relation, said cups being stitched to said front portion at their lower marginal edges by continuous V-shaped ratchet stitching, a nonelastic body encircling portion attached to said front portion and the outer marginal edges of said cups, shoulder straps attached to the upper marginal edges of said cups, said shoulder straps having intermediate sections oi cushioned material, the said garment being provided with V-shaped ratchet stitching at the lower marginal edge of said front portion which stitching together with the stitching on the lower marginal edges of said breast cups forms the outline of a diamond and permits breast support and flection without tension or binding.

HILDRED NELSON.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the iile of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 1,553,916 Rose Sept. 15, 1925 2,302,517 Berk Nov. 17, 1942 2,335,430 Metz Nov. 30, 1943 2,366,032 Jasper Dec. 26, 1944 2,386,557 Johanson Oct. 9, 1945 2,411,462 Plehn Nov. 19, 1946 2,420,472 Freedman May 13, 1947 

